Society of the Blessed RedeemerBehold the Lamb of God Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, "Be holy, for I am holy." And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear; knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. (1 Peter 1:13-19)
PurposeThe Society of the Blessed Redeemer (S.B.R.) exists to promote the greater glory of God by the intentional pursuit of gospel holiness through personal confession, repentance, and restoration. Even though the S.B.R. gathers as Christian men in need of personal sanctification, we do not purpose to separate ourselves from the larger Christian community, but to better serve our families, churches, and the body of Christ world-wide. GoalsOur primary goal is to maintain our focus on personal restoration by means of God’s grace through faith in Jesus Christ. We seek restoration and sanctification so we will be equipped to better exercise our several ministries. As we grow in grace, we will better serve the body of Christ. Through a commitment to honesty and transparency, an atmosphere of trust is created conducive to confession of sins - a "safe" place to find help. We provide a venue, additional to the local church, where Christian men can: - Provide accountability for one another through the exercise of the priesthood of all believers; to encourage one another to self-discipline so we can stand united in the good warfare and to fight the good fight – and having done all, to stand.
- Give and receive spiritual direction and counsel to one another when needed.
- Encourage one another, building one another up, and establishing camaraderie whereby we would not be alone in these battles.
Methods
We have monthly local chapter meetings led by a Chaplain. We organize by accountability partners of two or three men, upon whom we can call when needed. We pray for one another daily.Requirements for membership
A member must be a man in full agreement with the Apostles’ Creed. I BELIEVE in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth:
And in Jesus Christ his only Son, our Lord; Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost,
Born of the Virgin Mary, Suffered under Pontius Pilate, Was crucified, dead, and buried;
He descended into hell; The third day he rose again from the dead; He ascended into
heaven, And sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; From thence he shall
come to judge the quick and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Ghost; The holy catholic† Church; The Communion of Saints;
The Forgiveness of sins; The Resurrection of the body; And the Life everlasting. Amen.
† By the "holy catholic Church" is meant the blessed company of all faithful people in Christ, the Body of Christ, the invisible church made up of all true believers no matter what denomination. We DO NOT mean the Roman Catholic Church. The original meaning of the word "catholic," in reference to the Church, is "universal and orthodox." A correct use of the word in everyday English would be as, "You need to be more catholic in your reading." This would mean that you need to read more books on many different subjects, rather than only reading Tom Clancy novels. The Heidelberg Catechism has an excellent statement of what is meant by the Holy Catholic Church as follows: Q54: What do you believe concerning the "Holy Catholic Church"?
A54: That out of the whole human race,[1] from the beginning to the end of the world,[2] the Son of God,[3] by His Spirit and Word,[4] gathers, defends and preserves for Himself unto everlasting life a chosen communion [5] in the unity of the true faith;[6] and that I am and forever shall remain a living member of this communion.[7]
1. Gen. 26:4
2. John 10:10
3. Eph. 1:10-13
4. Rom. 1:16; 10:14-17; Isa. 59:21; Eph. 5:26
5. Rom. 8:29-30; Matt. 16:18; Eph. 4:3-6
6. Acts 2:46; Psa. 71:18; I Cor. 1:8-9; 11:26; John 10:28-30
7. I John 2:19; 3:21; Gal. 3:28 |
A member must also be in agreement with the following doctrines:(Excerpted from Knots Untied, by Bishop John Charles Ryle.)
the absolute supremacy of the Holy Scripture as the only rule of faith and practice, the only test of truth, and the only judge of controversy, as a result of Adam’s fall, all men are not only in a miserable, pitiable, and bankrupt condition, but in a state of guilt, imminent danger, and condemnation before God, have no will to serve God, no love of God, and no meetness for heaven, whose only hope is in the office and work of Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, Jesus Christ, has by His life, death, and resurrection, as our representative and substitute, obtained a complete salvation for sinners, and a redemption from the guilt, power, and consequences of sin; and that all who believe on Him are, even while they live, completely forgiven and justified from all things, reckoned righteous before God, and are interested in Christ and all His benefits, the root and foundation of all vital Christianity in anyone is the work of grace in the heart, by the Holy Spirit, bringing about inward repentance, inward faith, inward hope, inward hatred of sin, and inward love of God’s Law (the inward work of the Holy Spirit is necessary to a man’s salvation), the true grace of God is a thing that will always make itself manifest in the conduct, behavior, tastes, ways, choices, and habits of him who has it; where the Spirit is, He will always make His presence known. 3. A member must be committed to personal sanctification. One MembershipThe requirements for membership in the S.B.R., and the authority of each member, are the same regardless of vocation or calling. In the priesthood of all believers, we all have been given gifts to exercise within the body of Christ. We desire to avoid the Diotrephesian heresy described in 3 John 9-10, I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to have the preeminence among them, does not receive us. Therefore, if I come, I will call to mind his deeds which he does, prating against us with malicious words. And not content with that, he himself does not receive the brethren, and forbids those who wish to, putting them out of the church.
OrganizationThere are annual elections of local chapter Chaplains held on the first Saturday of Advent. A man is eligible for admission to full membership when he has signed a statement giving full, informed, and free assent to the items listed under Requirements for Membership and has attended twelve (12) meetings. He shall be admitted into the S.B.R. by a simple majority vote of the entire local chapter membership, and can be dismissed from the S.B.R. for violating the Rule by the same. RuleA brother must maintain confidentiality in all matters, child abuse excepted; should pray every day for the brothers; should attend the monthly meetings unless providentially hindered; should remain active in a local, evangelical church, striving always towards personal sanctification, measuring his life by Holy Scripture alone. Safeguarding Confidentiality, and Fraternal Correction(Adapted from the Rule of St. Augustine)
- If you notice in someone of your brothers this lack of confidentiality, admonish him at once so that the beginning of evil will not grow more serious but will be promptly corrected.
- But if you notice him doing the same thing again on some other day, even after your admonition, then let the offense be pointed out to two or three brothers so that he can be proven guilty on the testimony of these two or three and be corrected. And do not charge yourselves with ill-will when you bring this offense to light. Indeed, yours is the greater blame if you allow your brothers to be lost through your silence when you are able to bring about their correction by your disclosure. If your brother, for example, were suffering a bodily wound that he wanted to hide for fear of undergoing treatment, would it not be cruel of you to remain silent and a mercy on your part to make this known? How much greater then is your obligation to make his condition known lest he continue to suffer a more deadly wound of the soul.
- But if he fails to correct the fault despite this admonition the others are to be summoned so that in the presence of all he can be proven guilty, rather than stand accused on the word of one alone. Once proven guilty, he shall be expelled from the brotherhood even if he does not withdraw of his own accord. For this too is not done out of cruelty, but from a sense of compassion so that many others may not be lost through his bad example.
If you are interested in becoming a part of the Society of the Blessed Redeemer, please e-mail us at robert@providencerec.com Visit the Society of the Blessed Redeemer LINKS page |
